Drop the politics

What in the world is going on with Republican politicians in Pennsylvania? I was dismayed to read in the Gettysburg Times last Thursday that mostly Republican state legislators have approved a resolution to end the state of emergency Governor’s Wolf declared in March to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. The issue will now go to the courts to decide. Thankfully, this unfortunate legislation will likely not immediately impact the governor’s ability to respond if coronavirus cases begin to rise, though it certainly will add to confusion in the public mind about how to respond to the pandemic.

There ought to be a special word for politicians who in the midst of a national health crisis are willing to play politics to try to gain short term advantage over a governor of the opposing party. Most Republicans I know personally seem to fully understand that we are in a national emergency not unlike a war, but the politicians of the Republican party—our own State Senator Doug Mastriano among them—see things differently. They see a chance to score points against the governor in a time when we are all weary of the pandemic and anxious to return to something a little closer to normal.

Thursday’s Times article reported that according to a study conducted by public health researchers, the lockdown ordered by Governor Wolf saved an estimated 6,200 lives in Philadelphia alone. Though the lockdown has been difficult and damaging to many, shouldn’t we be grateful for the lives it has saved. Though no one knows exactly what will happen in the future, shouldn’t we be grateful that new cases in Pennsylvania continue to fall at a time when they seem to be rising sharply in some states that did not take strong preventative measures or opened up too quickly?

This pandemic thing could be with us for a long time. It’s time for the Republican party to drop the politics, and rejoin the effort to keep our communities safe.

Will Lane,

Gettysburg